Walking A Tightrope (Greatest Showman fanfiction)

Chapter One--Birthday Fit For A Sister

Sixteen years later, Phineas was let off of another job, on the day of Caroline's birthday. He came home to see his younger daughters running around playing while his oldest daughter Phylis and Charity doing the laundry. He was not surprised to see his family on the balcony. That was where they spent most of their time together. He was surely not surprised to see his eldest daughter helping his overworked wife.

"Honey. You don't have to do that. You can play with your sisters," he overheard his wife tell his daughter. He chuckled. That girl was her mother's girl at heart.....

"No, I've got this Mom. Besides, it looks like the girls are having fun," she told her back softly. Charity grinned as the girls made finger guns at them. The two pretended to be wounded. The girls laughing seemed to brighten their days. The next thing they knew, the girls were playing tag. Phineas decided this was his chance to sneak up on the girls doing the laundry. Charity turned around and jumped. Phylis laughed at her mother's reaction.

"Oh, god honey. You're home early," she laughed as well but hers in shock.

"There's my beautiful gymnast," P.T. said, hugging his daughter.

"Hi, Dad," she answered.

"And I'll be home early until further notice," he said, handing his wife a paper. Phylis leaned over, spotting it was a paper from his company telling him he was resigned from his job.

"You know, I didn't think you were right for that job," Charity shrugged.

"Or any place apparently," he said exhausted.

"But you'll find a place," his oldest daughter reassured him as she took a towel off the rack. P.T. sighed helping her smooth it out.

"Besides, isn't that what makes our life together so exciting?" his wife asked. Their daughter beamed. She always admired the way they loved each other.

"But Charity. This isn't the life we talked about when we were kids. What about the magic and the excitement?"

"What do you call those two girls again, huh?" she asked, obviously remembering. She placed an arm around her husband who put an arm around his daughter. "Hey, partners. Look who mosied into the corral."

The girls turned around spotting their father. They both went running seeing who could climb into his arms the fastest. Helen ended up winning but Caroline still jumped on her father's back, her younger sister right after.

"Did you bring the present?" Caroline wondered excitedly. "Present for what?" P.T. asked even though he knew fully.

"For my birthday," she reminded him.

"Your what?" he asked, pretending to be confused.

"My birthday," his daughter repeated.

"It's not your birthday," he laughed as he leaned down for the girls to get off.

"Yes, it is!" she laughed back.

"Okay I got your present," he agreed as the younger girls giggled and each took a spot on the ground, Helen climbing on her oldest sister's lap. "This, my dear daughters, is the most amazing birthday present a person has ever received."

"Oh, really? Most amazing, you say?" Phylis asked, raising her eyebrow.

"Oh yes, Phyl," he said. "This extraordinary machine was originally invented by Leonardo De Vinchi 4000 years ago. The blueprints for this have been lost for decades. Luckily for us, they were found just last week after a very stormy night, when a sunken pirate ship washed up on the shores of Nantucket. You may be asking who recovered this mystery. The answer to that is a man known as J.W Mercantile." The younger girls gasped in shock. They were amazed at the history but Phylis rolled her eyes.